In cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another.[1] Bigamy is a crime in most Western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other.[2][3] In countries that have bigamy laws, consent from a prior spouse makes no difference to the legality of the second marriage, which is usually considered void.

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Even before Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, Diocletian and Maximian passed strict anti-polygamy laws in 285 AD that mandated monogamy as the only form of legal marital relationship, as had traditionally been the case in classical Greece and Rome.[citation needed] In 393, the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I issued an imperial edict to extend the ban on polygamy to Jewish communities. In 1000, Rabbi Gershom ben Judah ruled polygamy inadmissible within Ashkenazi Jewish communities living in a Christian environment.

In ancient China, bigamy was a punishable offence; however, concubines and mistresses were tolerated as long as they were not acquired through an official marriage. A man, at any given time, could only be married to one woman, and vice versa. Issue with the wife enjoyed preference in inheritance and social status.[citation needed]

Most western countries do not recognize polygamous marriages, and consider bigamy a crime. Several countries also prohibit people from living a polygamous lifestyle. This is the case in some states of the United States where the criminalization of a polygamous lifestyle originated as anti-Mormon laws, although they are rarely enforced.[4]

In diplomatic law, consular spouses from polygamous countries are sometimes exempt from a general prohibition on polygamy in host countries. In some such countries, only one spouse of a polygamous diplomat may be accredited, however.[5]

China: Illegal. Up to 2 years' imprisonment, and up to 3 years for bigamy with soldiers (but tolerated for some minorities, such as Tibetans, in some rural areas in the south-west).

Colombia Illegal with exceptions (such as religion). Although bigamy no longer exists as a lone figure in the Colombian judicial code marrying someone new without dissolving an earlier marriage may yield to other felonies such as civil status forgery or suppression of information.[10]

Republic of Ireland: Bigamy is a statutory offence. It is committed by a person who, being married to another person, goes through a ceremony capable of producing a valid marriage with a third person. The offence is created by section 57 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861.[13] This section replaces section 26 of the Act 10 Geo. 4 c. 34 for the Republic of Ireland.[14]

Malaysia: Illegal for non-Muslims under federal jurisdiction. Under section 494 of Chapter XX of the Penal Code, non-Muslim offenders found guilty of bigamy or polygamy shall be punished up to 7 years of imprisonment. Bigamy or polygamy is legal only for Muslims with restrictions under state jurisdiction, rarely practiced.[16]

Thailand: Prior to October 1, 1935, polygamy in Thailand could be freely practiced and recognised under civil law. Since its abolition, it is still practiced and widely accepted in Thailand, though no longer recognised, as the law states "A man or a woman cannot marry each other while one of them has a spouse."